WITCH Traitor
by yellow 14
Summary: The last thing Will remembers is going to bed after an exhausting battle in Meridian. Did she really betray the guardians to Phobos ten years ago? Why can't she remember the past ten years? And can she fix her mistakes?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: No I don't own W.I.T.C.H. Are we clear on that?

AN: A hyperactive muse spits out the strangest things. This fic has been screaming to be let out. Comic based.

Will looked down at her sleeping astral drop. She looked so peaceful it seemed a shame to wake her, but Will wanted to get some sleep before school tomorrow, especially after tonight's fight with Phobos's forces in Meridian and so with a brief shake she woke her astral drop. Her drop stood up and Will reabsorbed her. If Will had any idea what the consequences of this one act was, then she never would've done that at all. With a yawn, she curled up in her bed and fell asleep.

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It was a nightmare. There was no other explanation for it. Will was in her guardian form, standing beside Phobos, a smile on her face. She could see the other members of W.I.T.C.H in their normal forms, caught in the middle of a ferocious battle and she knew that she was the reason they were fighting in their human forms. Taranee was staring at Will with an expression of disbelief and fury.

Princess Elyon lay at Will's feet, her body drained of energy, the light of Meridian extinguished forever.

Beside Elyon, Cornelia lay face down, a pool of her own blood staining her beautiful long hair. There was a huge wound in her back, almost certainly a fatal one. Looking down at Cornelia as she breathed her last, Will could see her mouth one last word.

"Why?"

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Irma was in some kind of military getup, a commando if Will was to hazard a guess.

Will on the other hand, was wearing a simple black dress of Metamorian design.

Irma is lying against a tree, an arrow in her shoulder. Lying besides her is a gun, Will doesn't know the type, but the spent cartridges lying around it indicate that it has been fired recently. She looks down at her friend (former friend a voice whispers at the back of her mind). Summoning the Heart of Candracar forth, Will unleashes a huge blast of pink magic and Irma is vaporised in the blink of an eye.

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Will felt herself steadily waking up. The sun was shining in from a window. Will resisted the urge to curl up and go back to sleep, the silk bedsheets felt so good. Hold that thought. Silk?! What am I doing with silk bedsheets? She wondered to herself. Since when have I had silk bedsheets?

Considerably wakened by this realisation, she began to notice other things that were out of place. Things that quite clearly didn't belong at all. Like the fact that she was in her guardian form. (How else do you become a beautiful young woman overnight?) Or the fact that under the silken bedsheets, she wasn't wearing anything. Nada, zip, sweet fuck all. But if she was in guardian form, where were her wings? (In her mind she could hear Irma reply sardonically "Try your back.") But they weren't there.

Secondly, Will was most definitely not home.

Will closed her eyes and placed her hands on her head as she tried to figure out what was going on. Swiftly getting dressed, she sees a calendar and lets out a gasp of surprise. The year is 2017. Ten years after she had gone to bed. Will placed her hands on her head and groaned. Then she realised. She wasn't in her guardian form. She'd grown up into this woman. What the hell happened?

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The guard looked in at the prisoner. Her starved frame and bruises a testament to her harsh treatment as a prisoner of Phobos. Under the dirt, her almond shaped eyes revealed her Asian heritage. Just a stupid earthling who thought she could stop Phobos. Rumour had it, she was one of the guardians. It would explain why Lord Cedric took his frustrations out on her with considerable regularity.

Hay Lin watched as Lord Cedric entered the dungeon. She had long given up hope of being rescued, the last attempted had resulted in Irma's death.

Will he rape me or won't he? She wondered as she watched him enter the dungeons. Two days ago he had raped her followed by a thorough beating because Phobos had refused to elevate him to the Court of murmurs, yet again.

The first time he raped her was the night Elyon had died, some ten years earlier and Hay Lin was still in shock over Will's betrayal and the deaths of Elyon and Cornelia. He had been determined to extract information about the rebels from her and rape had been a part of her torture.

Entering the cell, Cedric's attack was the most vicious one she had ever experienced. As he violated her once more, she let out one last desperate thought before she passed out.

Please let this be over something really drastic.

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Taranee looked at the documents in front of her. Now they had a chance to save her friend Hay Lin. It had hurt her badly to leave her in Phobos dungeon, but with this information, there was a glimmer of hope that this one would succeed. And there was the chance for revenge. Taranee had a lot of old scores to settle. Especially with a certain redheaded girl named Will Vandom.

AN: I've tried to make the rape and torture of Hay Lin realistic and I hope I got it right. If I haven't, then I apologise. In the comics, Cedric openly wants to serve evil, so I thought lets make him evil.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Fanfiction is fiction written by the fans of a given story/series. Ergo someone who owns it clearly doesn't write fanfiction. This work is a work of fanfiction, draw your own conclusions.

AN: Heart of Demons managed to get my muse up and running again, with a picture he sent me. Although the picture had nothing in common with this fic, it got me going.

Taranee looked at the woman who was sitting on the other side of the table. With her long dark hair and muddy green eyes, Nerissa was regarded as one of the most attractive woman in the resistance. Taranee didn't trust her at all though and if Will hadn't betrayed them then in all probability Nerissa would be her enemy, not her ally. Taranee was determined to win this war and to do that she had to use every resource at her disposal and if this meant dealing with another evil, well so be it.

"So, you called this meeting because you claim to have a means of turning the tide of this war in our favour." Nerissa began. "What are you proposing exactly?"

"We recently captured some documents on the defences of Candracar." Taranee paused. "Now we all know that Candracar's defences are almost impossible to breach from the outside without at least having the Heart of Candracar on your side. But there is a way into the temple without having to breach its defences."

Nerissa raised an eyebrow. "Really?" she asked, scepticism written on her face.

"Yes. You see after Candracar fell to the Traitorous Bitch (Taranee refused to call Will Vandom by her real name.) Phobos decided to create a gateway to Candracar to allow his minions free passage through Candracar. You need magical clearance to get through though and once you arrive, Phobos's troops will immediately attack you. You and your Knights of Vengeance," Taranee paused as she gestured to Ember, Tridart, Shagon and Khor, "are the only troops that can handle the numbers of guards there. Once you get to the Aurameres, you can reconnect Hay Lin to hers and interrupt Will's powers."

"And what are you and your Phoenix commandos going to be doing while we're performing this useless gesture?" Nerissa asked with some sarcasm, but Taranee was prepared for this.

"We" she began "are going to go into Metamoor. Your attack will disrupt the detection grid that stopped our last attempt at rescuing Hay Lin. Together with Hay Lin, we'll be able to bring down the entire castle and hopefully take out some of Phobos's top minions."

Nerissa smiled, sending a shiver down Taranee's spine. "I'm impressed Miss Cook. Very well, when does this attack start?"

"In one hours time. Here's a gate key to get you through the gate. Cedric doesn't know it's missing yet, but he will do soon enough, so time is of the essence. Good luck."

"You too Taranee Cook, you too."

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Will jumped as someone knocked on the door.

"Mrs Vandom?" a voice asked through the door.

"Come in." she replied somewhat nervously. A tall, Asian man stepped through the door.

"Don't worry Mrs Vandom, it's just a routine check up on your pregnancy." He said with a smile.

PREGNANCY! She thought to herself in shock, mum is going to kill me. Then the absurdity of that thought hit her. At twenty-four, she was just a little to old to worry about mum. She arranged her face into a neutral expression.

"Of course doctor. How far along is it exactly? One, two months?" Will asked innocently

"Two months." He said with a frown.

"That long eh? My how time flies" Will replied cheerfully.

"Yes, well shall we get started?" He asked with a slight tone of suspicion "King Phobos is most anxious to ensure the good health of his forthcoming child."

Will's eyes widened. "Phobos's child?" she gasped, before she promptly fainted.

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Hay Lin steadily opened her eyes and tried to sit up. She winced as she felt the pain of her injuries. Whatever had annoyed Cedric this time, it had been something serious and she'd taken the brunt of his anger. Bringing her knees to her chest, Hay Lin began to chant Buddhist prayers from her childhood. They weren't much good against Lord Cedric's attacks, but they provided her with a sense of comfort in this hellhole.

As she chanted, she found herself thinking of her old friends. Irma's jokes, Cornelia's confidence and Taranee's quiet intelligence. She refused to even think of Will in that group. She'd been so proud when her grandmother had explained about her and her friends being chosen as the new guardians of the veil. But after Will's betrayal, she'd began to wonder if it was in fact a curse.

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Nerissa's Knights attack came fast and furious. Shagon blasted through the troops protecting the Earth end of the gate like they were mere rag dolls. A wall of fire from Ember incinerated those that had avoided Shagon's blast, while Tridart and Khor tore into the soldiers, physically ripping them apart. Soon the gate had fallen and Nerissa stood in front of it. Closing her eyes, Nerissa sent Taranee a message telepathically.

"We've taken the gate." She said in her message.

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Taranee looked at the four people standing in front of her. Four people who she'd personally trained in the art of fire magic. (Taranee chuckled to herself. She was the only person who could teach fire magic.) And each and every single one of them had proven themselves in battle, time and time again.

There was Eric Lyndon, a young man with short dark brown hair and brown eyes. Eric had lost his grandfather, Zachary Lyndon, when Phobos had invaded Earth.

Then there was Alchemie Jones, a young woman with short brown hair and green eyes. Taranee had been unwilling to take her on at first, the girls emo-goth approach to life had made Taranee think that training her would be a waste of time, but Alchemie had persevered and to everyone's surprise, she mastered the magic really fast. Taranee never found out why she was involved though and Alchemie didn't want to talk about it.

The third member of their little squad was Sarah Weising, her long red hair, brown eyes and heart shaped face had drawn many an admirers glance, but she turned them all away. An ex-slave worker from Europe, Sarah was highly introverted and seldom spoke unless she had to. Taranee guessed that whatever had happened to her as a slave had driven her inwards, but Sarah refused to talk about it.

Finally there was Thomas LeBlanc, a narcissistic Frenchman with a sense of the grandiose. He had short dirty-blonde hair and powerful blue eyes. Thomas was probably the biggest mystery of them all. If asked about his past, he created wildly absurd stories, each one contradicting the other. But in the field, he was completely honest.

In short, Taranee thought to herself, we're all good candidates for a loony bin. "Nerissa's taken the gate, now it's our turn. Everyone into the portal." She shouted with a wave towards the portal to Metamoor. Hold on Hay Lin, we're coming she thought to herself.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own W.I.T.C.H. All I own is my ideas. Got that? Good.

AN: This chapter was the hardest one to write yet. I wanted to get the feel for it right.

Will opened her eyes to see Phobos and a dozen others standing above her bed with concerned looks on their faces.

"Will, my love, are you ok?" Phobos asked, a look of worry on his face.

"F-f-fine I think." Will replied, a little unsteadily. Phobos swooped down and kissed her firmly on the lips and Will experienced what she would describe as the strangest sensation she'd ever felt. A contradictory mixture of complete rapture and love and a sensation of complete revulsion.

As their lips parted, Phobos gazed deep into her eyes. He was clearly smitten with Will, but why, well Will couldn't say.

"I love you." He whispered to her. Before Will could reply a guard came crashing in.

"Sir, Candracar, is under attack by Nerissa and her knights!"

"Candracar!" Will exclaimed in shock as she rose from the bed.

Phobos turned and looked at her lovingly. "Not to worry my sweet. I will personally lead the defence." And with that swept out of the room, leaving Will alone with her thoughts.

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Nerissa glared at the walls of Candracar. Oh how she hated this place! She could still remember when the council had sentenced her. She'd spent many years in her prison imagining how she would make each and every member of that council pay for what they did to her. Especially the Oracle.

But when she was released, it was already too late. The leader of the next generation of guardians had already beaten her to it. Now the Temple was in the hands of it's enemies and practically a prison, as the Dark Mother's roots secured it against all threats.

The Dark Mother was a mystery to Nerissa. Like Nerissa, the Dark Mother had good reason to hate Candracar, but unlike Nerissa, Dark Mother felt no affection for Earth. Nor did she have any reason to work for Phobos though.

Looking down at the Aurameres, Nerissa began to work her magic on Will's.

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Taranee saw the detection grid flashing. With a small hand signal to the others, Taranee launched herself into the air and turned her body into a moving flame. Eric, Alchemie, Sarah and Thomas followed her without hesitation. They flew across the Metamorian sky, five balls of fire. The grids flickering hid them from any observers. As they landed near the castle and switched their flames off, Taranee turned to face them all.

"We stay silent and we avoid the guards as much as possible." Taranee whispered. Sarah glared at her mutinously, but otherwise stayed silent. Eric and Thomas nodded, but Alchemie decided to speak up.

"Why don't we just storm in?" Alchemie asked in annoyance.

"Because the longer it takes for them to realise that Nerissa's attack is the decoy, the better our chances of succeeding. Any more questions?" Taranee replied. They all shook their heads. "Then let's get going."

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Will got to her feet and started to head for the door, before suddenly pausing. Where was she supposed to go exactly? She had no idea as to where she was going to go from here. Will turned towards the mirror and asked herself.

"What am I doing here?"

To Will's surprise, the mirror image replied.

"Because I love Phobos. And Phobos loves me."

Will shook her head in disbelief. "No I hate his guts. He's going to kill Elyon and absorb her power. And when he does, he'll come after me and my friends as he invades our world."

"He already has." Will's mirror image replied nonchalantly.

"What!?!?!" Will yelled.

"He couldn't have done it without our help you know." Will's mirror image replied in a conversational voice, an evil grin on her face.

"Y-y-you're lying!" Will shot back. But was she? Will remembered those nightmares all too well. Did Will really betray her friends to Phobos?

Will's mirror image seemed to know what she was thinking.

"Why don't you ask little Hay-Hay?" Will's mirror image asked mockingly. "She's still down in Phobos's dungeons last time I heard."

Spinning on her heel, Will started to walk down to the dungeons. What scared her is that she knew where to go, without even thinking about it.

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Hay Lin's eyes widened in disbelief as she watched Will Vandom enter the dungeon and look around. WHAT was SHE doing here? She watched as Will's eyes scanned the dungeon, no hint of recognition at the sight of her friend.

Will turned to face the guard. "Could you tell me where Hay Lin is?" She asked. Hay Lin almost let out a snort of disbelief. The guard raised a hand and pointed to Hay Lin and Will let out a gasp of surprise.

"Hay!" Will cried out, rushing towards Hay Lin. "My god, what have they done to you?"

Hay Lin glared at her former friend and spat at her, globules of spit landing on Will's face.

"Traitorous bitch!" Hay Lin screamed and watched in satisfaction as Will recoiled from her words.

Will came up to Hay Lin's cell. "Hay, we're supposed to be friends. What happened?"

Hay Lin saw red at that point.

"WHAT HAPPENED? WHAT HAPPENED? HOW DARE YOU!" she screeched, all the venom and injustices of the past ten years combining into one all consuming rage. "YOU HAPPENED, THAT'S WHAT!"

Hay Lin's arms shot out and grabbed Will round the throat, her arms discovering strength that she'd thought was long gone. "YOU SOLD US ALL OUT! BECAUSE OF YOU, I'VE SPENT THE LAST TEN YEARS IN THIS HELLHOLE." Hay Lin paused to take breathe "BECAUSE OF YOU, PHOBOS WAS ABLE TO MURDER HIS SISTER! CORNELIA DIED BECAUSE YOU TURNED ON US AT THE LAST MINUTE! YOU MURDERED IRMA PERSONALLY! AND YOU HAVE THE GALL TO ASK ME WHAT HAPPENED!"

Before Hay Lin could finish strangling Will though, she was beaten back by the guards.

"I'm sorry, Royal Consort. Lord Cedric paid her a… personal visit earlier." The guard told her, his distaste showing on his face. Will looked puzzled for a minute, then her eyes widened as she saw Hay Lin's ripped clothes and bruises.

"Surely he didn't…" Will hesitated, unsure as to whether she really wanted to know the answer. "Surely he didn't…rape her?" Will asked in an uncertain voice.

The guard hesitated. He had a feeling that the wrong answer might well result in a sudden and painful demise. Will Vandom, Prince Phobos's lover had been known to kill the bearers of bad news and the guard was pretty sure that Will did not want to hear that Lord Cedric had raped her former friend. Fortunately he was saved from having to answer by Hay Lin who screamed out her answer.

"Yes he raped me!" Hay Lin screamed out at Will, who flinched.

"Then I promise you, he will be brought to justice for that." Will said quietly. Hay Lin let out a mocking laugh in return.

"And what about all the other times Will? How about the torture he put me through as you and your boyfriend demanded to know what the others were doing. You didn't seem to care then!"

Will's face turned pale. Her reflection had been right. She HAD betrayed the guardians. But how? And why? And why couldn't she remember any of it? Putting her hand on her chest, she began to summon forth the Heart of Candracar.

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Taranee was hiding in an alcove just above Will. Hidden in the shadows, she watched the exchange with interest. What was Will's game, she thought to herself. Any information Hay Lin had that could be used against the resistance had long since ceased to be of any value. As she watched Will draw forth the Heart of Candracar, Taranee saw Will's face twist in pain and Will fell to her knees. As the Heart came forward, another Will Vandom came forth from Will. The two Will's were kneeling side by side. And then they opened their eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Have you SEEN the fatality rate on most of my fics? Do you see that kind of fatality rate on W.I.T.C.H? Didn't think so. Although if you're really stupid enough to believe I own W.I.T.C.H…

AN: When I'm referring to Astral Will's perspective in this chapter, I will type her name like this _Will, _in an attempt to avoid confusion.

Will opened her eyes and let out a gasp of surprise. The Heart had never hurt her before when she'd summoned it, but this time it had really hurt as pains had shot through her chest. Turning her head to her left, she let out another gasp of surprise as she saw a precise copy of herself looking back at her. If looks could kill, the look Will's mirror image was giving her could have vaporised her on the spot.

From her alcove, Taranee watched as the two Will's turned to look at each other and although Taranee couldn't see the expression on the other Will's face, the one that she could see had an expression of pure surprise, as though she had never intended to summon forth the other. Curious, Taranee decided to watch and wait. She was no match for the Traitorous Bitch one on one anyway, the Heart of Candracar meant that she was far to powerful for Taranee to even consider.

Telepathically, she summoned the other Phoenix Commando's to her position.

"Be quiet, we want to avoid a fight for as long as possible." She whispered telepathically. Eric, Alchemie, Sarah and Thomas silently acknowledged her and started heading for her position.

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Nerissa blasted another root from the Dark Mother aside as attempted to grab her. The Dark Mother was no match for Nerissa's Knights working together. Ember burnt the roots away, while Shagon's wings provided a draft to blow the ashes away. Tridart's blades of ice froze the water in the branches, causing them to explode, while Khor grabbed the shattered remains and threw them aside. But on the horizon, Nerissa could see Phobos and his troops charging into Candracar.

"You'd better have gotten through Taranee." Nerissa murmured under her breath as she turned her attentions onto reconnecting Hay Lin to her Auramere.

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"W-w-w-what are you doing here? I didn't summon you!" Will exclaimed, backing off from her double. (Probably an Astral Drop, but Will couldn't say for certain that it was. Weren't Astral drops supposed to come out when YOU summoned them, not at random.)

"Of course you didn't summon me, little girl. The Heart" Will's double pulled forth a copy of the Heart forward and thrust it into Will's face. "Summoned me, no doubt to destroy you."

"But…" Will began, only for her double to begin talking once more.

"I am the one who's been running things for the past ten years of course." Will's double gave Will a cruel smile. "Of the two of us, who do you think had the strength and the sophistication to win Phobos's heart? Who had the wisdom to realise that Phobos's victory was inevitable? It was me of course! You didn't even have what it takes to win Matt Olsen over and he was a pathetic excuse for a man! You are just my weakness!" Will's double glanced at Hay Lin contemptuously. "Your loyalty to your friends is as contemptible as you are. A sign of your weakness."

Will pulled herself up to her full height and glared at her astral drop. (She still wasn't sure that it was an astral drop, but it was the closest thing she could thing of.)

"This may surprise you, whatever you are."

"Astral drop." Will's Astral drop supplied.

"Astral drop then. My friends are not a weakness, they're the greatest strength a girl could ask for. Phobos's victory, far from being inevitable, was something that should've been stopped. And Matt Olsen was a far better person and a far stronger person, than you and Phobos." Will paused as she felt a tear slide down her eye at the thought of losing Matt Olsen, as surely she had, before composing herself. "I'm not the weak one here, you are!"

With a snarl, Will's astral drop sent a blast of black energy from her copy of the Heart flying at Will. Barely inches away from her face, Will's hastily erected shield stopped the blast. (Much to Will's surprise, her magic was WHITE!)

"I will destroy you." Will's astral drop snarled. "I will show you the meaning of true power!" And with that, the two Will's sent a continuous stream of magical energy at each other, the two beams hitting each other firmly in the middle of the two Will's.

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Nerissa grinned as she saw Hay Lin's Auramere connected to its former owner once more. Turning towards her knights, she yelled out for them to retreat. It made no sense to die unnecessarily after all. Even if, and Nerissa felt a slight twinge of loss at the thought of her old friend, she was rescuing the granddaughter of her old friend Yan Lin.

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Hay Lin let out a small gasp of surprise as swirls of purple magic began to swirl around her starved, beaten and battered body. Both Will's where far to caught up in their own battle to notice it though. (Much to Hay Lin's relief. She wasn't sure what to make of what had just happened in front of her and she wanted to avoid drawing the attention of both Will's for now.)

Taranee stared in amazement as the two Will's battled one another. Admittedly, it only consisted of the two Will's sending a continuous stream of magical energy at each other, Taranee was intrigued by what Will's astral drop had said. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Hay Lin engulfed in a purple magic sphere and, determined to keep either Will from noticing what was happening, Taranee stepped forward and sent a stream of her magic towards the astral drop. Not because she believed that Will was innocent as per say, but out of the two of them, it was the none-astral drop Will who was less likely to attack her and Hay Lin.

Will let out a gasp of surprise as a stream of red fire magic joined her own beam of white.

"Taranee! What…how…?" she exclaimed in surprise. Taranee nodded towards Will's Astral Drop.

"Later." She mouthed, but her expression was one of distrust and truthfully, Will couldn't blame her.

As the purple bubble surrounded Hay Lin, she felt a distinct tingling sensation, as though her magic was happy to be back with her once more. Ten years of starvation and abuse were not easy to cure though, even for magic.

A sudden look of fear and concentration crossed the face of Will's astral drop as her magic gave way to the combined powers of Will and Taranee. Will's astral drops flow of magic exploded backwards with such force that the Astral Will was sent flying into the wall behind her.

Taranee walked up to the unconscious form of Will's astral drop and glared. Opening the palm of her hand, a stream of fire swept forth and incinerated Will's astral drop.

Will fell to her knees as ten years of memories flooded her mind all at once.

Astral Drops flashback one

_Will_ felt herself pop into existence, with a slight tingling sensation. Her mind was nothing more than a blank slate, with neither personality nor feelings of any kind. Funny, Will remembered this event from her own perspective, but now she was seeing it from the astral drops perspective.

It was the time when they first entered Meridian. Will and the others had been cornered by Frost the Hunter and were hiding in a barn. Will had summoned up their astral drops for the first time from the Heart of Candracar, in an attempt to divert Frost's attention away from them.

_Will_ felt herself and the other astral drops charge out of the barn door. As planned, they caught Frost's attention. Slamming his sword into the ground a cage of magical energy formed around them. Although _Will_ was trapped by Frost, she still wasn't feeling any fear.

She merely watched with absolutely no feelings whatsoever as the real Will and the others made their escape. She felt nothing when she watched Taranee being captured. Even as the other astral drops began to dissolve away, she felt nothing.

Then Phobos grinned at her and waved his hand and suddenly she could FEEL and THINK. And there were two things she could feel right now. One was fear, fear that she was going to dissolve away like the others. The other feeling was a surge of pure hate to Will and the other guardians for using her and her fellow astral drops to cover their escape.

With a smile, Phobos waved his hand and _Will_ was transported to an underground palace. A moment later she was joined by Phobos, who was wearing a kind expression and a gentle smile. His hands were open and welcoming.

"Welcome" he began "to your new home my sweet. No one can see us here. Not even the Oracle." He finished with a grin.

End flashback

Astral Drop flashback two

"Can I ask something?" _Will_ asked Phobos across the table where they were eating dinner. Phobos waved a hand to say she could. "Well…umm" _Will_ began nervously, playing with her food. "Why do I need to hide from the Oracle and Candracar?"

Phobos gave her a kind smile and _Will_ felt her insides go all gooey.

"The Oracle and the others, the guardians and all their kind, would seek to destroy you and I couldn't live with that." Phobos said and then he bent over to her and placed a small kiss on _Will's_ lips. After Phobos left, _Will_ practically jumped for joy.

End Flashback

Astral Drops flashback three

For the past two months, _Will _had been dining with Phobos. He kissed and caressed her, made her feel like she was the most important person in his life. She was smitten and she didn't care. And last night, Phobos told _Will _that he had a way to make her completely human in every sense of the word. Much as she loved being alive, the fact that she was only an astral drop, created in a rush, meant that the intimate sexual parts of her body weren't really there.

The door opened and Phobos walked in with a golden book under his arm.

"Please, sit down." He told _Will_. As she sat down on the floor, Phobos sat down facing her. "The process requires me to turn you into Will Vandom as she is now." He told her calmly. Opening the book, he began to chant in a strange tongue and _Will_ felt a slight tingling as her body became younger and less mature. When it was over, Phobos leaned over to her ear.

"You are as beautiful as the day I first met you." He whispered, before giving her a sensual lick in her ear that sent a shiver down her spine. "Now for the second part of the process."

Phobos gave _Will_ a green potion. "Drink up, for you will need this to possess the guardian leader. It will keep you hidden from the Oracle as well." He told her and Will could've sworn she saw a glint of victory in Phobos's eyes. There was a sudden flash and _Will _suddenly found herself staring at another copy of herself. Or more accurately Will's astral drop. Another astral drop. There was a sudden pop! And the other astral drop vanished away. _Will _stepped out, feeling a surge of happiness. She'd make them all pay, every last one. Candracar and the Guardians and especially Will Vandom.

"You will need to let her reabsorb you. Then, when she sleeps, seize control of her body. Her mind will remain asleep for all eternity, while you my love will have her body to control."

And so, when Will woke her up later that night, _Will _didn't fight her or try to stop her. She simply allowed Will to reabsorb her. And as she felt Will fall asleep, she felt her mind seize control. A control that was to remain for another ten years.

End flashback

Astral Drops flashback four

_Will _watched as Elyon's double stepped towards Phobos at the coronation. She felt herself grin. Not one of the Guardians had figured out that _Will_ was in control of their leaders body. She had played the role to perfection. But not for much longer. Today was the day she could finally reveal herself.

Closing her hands together, she stared at the real Elyon, who was hidden in the crowd, right in front of her. Whispering the magic words, she exchanged the two Elyon's as Phobos lowered the crown of light onto Elyon's head.

Elyon let out a scream of agony as the crown drained away her powers and her life. As Elyon died, her double vanished. _Will _teleported herself onto the stage to stand beside the love of her life, Phobos himself. And then she reverted the guardians back to their human forms, an evil grin forming on her face.

It was Cornelia who was the first to realise what had happened.

"Elyon!" Cornelia screamed as she charged up to her friends fallen body. But as she reached the stage, a Meridian guard slammed his axe into her back with a sickening thud. As Cornelia fell to the ground, pools of her blood forming at the bottom of _Will's _feet. Caleb rushed towards her, sword in hand, screaming her name, only for Phobos to revert him to a flower once more.

It was Taranee though, who pulled the guardians together though.

"Guardians, retreat!" Taranee bellowed telepathically. But as Irma, Taranee and Hay Lin retreated to a sewer, they were surrounded by Phobos's troops. Hay Lin turned to her friends Irma and Taranee and said something. _Will_ couldn't hear her at this distance, but she imagined Hay Lin was telling the others that she'd cover their retreat, then join them. Then _Will _felt it for the first time. Will's consciousness had partially woken up, but _Will_ sent her back to sleep.

Turning to face Phobos's soldiers, she sent the closest ones flying back with tremendous force with the most powerful gust of wind she'd ever produced. But as she turned to rejoin her friends, Cedric fell on her and grabbed her by the wrists. . Taranee and Irma tried to reach her, but were forced back by yet more soldiers.

_Will _smiled. Revenge was very sweet indeed. That night, Phobos took her to his bed for the very first time and _Will _discovered that he was very good in THAT department.

End Flashback

Astral Drops flashback five

_Will _stepped forward and looked at Hay Lin, hanging in chains. Stripped naked, you could see the whip marks down her back, long streaks of gashes that would scar her for life. Mixed in with the gashes were burn marks where Cedric had branded Hay Lin with a red-hot poker. There were bruises on her face, chest and between her legs where Cedric had hurt her in particular while he raped her. A stream of blood ran down her hands and arms where her fingernails had been ripped out and her fingers were at unnatural angles, a result of Cedric's handiwork with a hammer.

"With Elyon gone, I can unleash on you, what I planned for your friend Taranee. And soon, she'll be in my clutches as well." Cedric gloated to Hay Lin with an evil smile on his face.

"Hay, Hay, just tell us what we want to know and you can join us in luxury in the palace." _Will _said in a calm voice.

Hay Lin looked at _Will _with a look of pure defeat in her eyes.

"Come closer." She whispered hoarsely. _Will _grinned inwardly, believing that Hay Lin has finally broken. _Will_ stepped forward, determined not to miss a single word.

"Closer." Hay Lin whispers and _Will _puts her ear next to Hay Lin's mouth. Suddenly _Will _felt a sharp pain in her ear as Hay Lin bit down as hard as she could. Yelling in pain, _Will _pulled herself away hard as Hay Lin was beaten back by the guards.

"Unlike you, some of us know what loyalty is!" Hay Lin screamed at _Will_. Turning away in disgust, _Will _walked away. Turning to Cedric on her way out of the dungeon, _Will _said to him in a cold voice.

"Do whatever you deem necessary to break her, but make sure she lives, I want her to suffer."

As _Will _left the dungeon, Hay Lin began to scream once more as Cedric started to put her through a fresh round of torture. But Hay Lin didn't break, she never did.

End flashback

Astral drop flashback six

Candracar. _Will _stood in its halls once more, but not as a prisoner. No she stood as a victorious conqueror. The body of the Oracle lay firmly at her feet and the council shattered. Taranee and Irma had fought hard and so had the council, but ultimately they were no match for the combined powers of Phobos and Will. The Heart of Candracar had allowed them to reach Candracar and had shielded them from the council's defences.

Phobos then lead his troops into Candracar, the powers stolen from his sister being used to devastating effect against the council members, who fought hard to stop him.

It wasn't all one sided though. Yan Lin left Cedric half-dead from a thorough attack of the winds. Apparently, she'd seen what Cedric had inflicted on her beloved granddaughter and wanted to make sure he never hurt anyone again. It was only because Phobos blasted her away with a massive blast of magical energy, that Cedric was still alive at all.

Frost, on the other hand, was far less lucky. He'd stepped in to stop the deadly whirlwind that was Luba from killing any more of his troops. Frost charged at Luba, atop his stead Crimson, determined to run her down. Luba, however, didn't stand there obligingly. Leaping into the air, Luba sent a flying kick into Frost's chin, sending him sprawling to the ground. Before he could even pick himself up, Luba's sword swung through his throat so fast, it was practically a blur. Ultimately though, she was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of troops Phobos brought along with him and she too died defending Candracar.

It was the Oracle who gave them the most trouble. Together, with a group of other council members, he held them back with a truly powerful shield that the troops could not penetrate, while Taranee and Irma blasted troops back with fire and water. But unlike before, where they'd held back from fatal shots, this time they were shooting to kill.

It wasn't until _Will _forcibly absorbed the remaining Aurameres (Taranee and Irma had already absorbed theirs) that they were able to break through, killing the Oracle with the feedback. Taranee, Irma and a handful of others were able to escape to Earth, while those left behind, died where they stood.

"Not to worry my love, they will not last long against us when we conquer Earth." Phobos whispered in _Will's _ear. Sliding his hands up the back of her top, he began kissing her neck in an erotic fashion. She started to return his kisses, removing his clothing as well. And in the halls of Candracar, they made love to each other.

End flashback

Astral Drops flashback seven

_Will _felt a tingle in her magic as Irma and Taranee slipped into her magical detection grid.

"They're here!" She whispered to Phobos,

Taking a contingent of troops with her (more for Phobos's reassurance than any real need.) she attacked Taranee and Irma's little group. Irma's group is firing at _Will's _troops, keep their heads down, while Irma and Taranee lead their troops back to where they came through. One archer is able to get a shot at Irma as she retreats and the arrow hits her in the shoulder. None of the others who are with her notice that she's not with them anymore.

_Will_ walked forward to Irma and looks down at her. Irma's in some kind of military getup and _Will _feels Will's consciousness partially awaken once more. Summoning forth the Heart of Candracar, _Will _unleashes a blast of pink magic and vaporises Irma on the spot. She can feel the Hearts unhappiness at being used by her, but she's determined to hold onto it.

End Flashback

Astral drops flashback eight

_Will _walks into the dungeon and turns to face Hay Lin.

"My dear Hay Lin" _Will _begins in a mockingly friendly

voice "I have some good news for you."

"You've decided to kill Phobos?" Hay Lin asked sarcastically.

_Will _shook her head. "Why would I do something like that?" she asks, sarcasm dripping from her every word. "No, your friends have attempted to rescue you. I think you'll enjoy seeing how it turned out." And without further ado, _Will _projected onto the nearby wall what had happened. When it was finished, _Will _turned towards her former friend and smiled cruelly. "Perhaps you'll reconsider your resistance now?"

Hay Lin spat in _Will's _face.

"Go to hell bitch." Hay Lin whispered, but her words came out with such power that _Will_ practically recoiled from them.

Astral Drops flashback nine

_Will _looks out over her kingdom into the setting sun. It's a quiet, peaceful scene and it's helping _Will _to think about what Phobos is asking of her. It's been ten years since the fall of the old guardians and still there is resistance to Phobos across the worlds. On Earth, Britain stands alone against them, protected by King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. In turn, they provide support to the few rebel groups around the world.

The door opens and _Will _hears a man step in. She knows, without even turning around, that it's Phobos and suddenly she knows what her answer will be. She turns to face him.

"Yes, yes I will!" _Will _tells Phobos enthusiastically, a smile lighting up her face. "Yes, I think we should try for a baby!" And for the first time, they don't use contraceptive magic during their lovemaking.

End Flashback

The memories continue to flood Will and her mind boggles at the sheer volume of memories. Eventually though, they finally run out.

Will turns and looks at her two friends, Taranee and Hay Lin. Hay Lin's cage has been busted open and Hay Lin is suddenly a beautiful young woman in her old guardian costume.

"What the hell just happened there?" Taranee asked Will with a calm voice that defies her posture. A fireball is sitting in Taranee's hand, pointed firmly at Will, while Hay Lin's hands are glowing purple with magic. Both of them look like they want to kill Will and to be honest, Will can't blame them. Realising that she needs them to trust her, Will pulled forth the Heart of Candracar and put it in Hay Lin's hands.

"Taranee" Will began "I need you to open a telepathic link with us." Putting her hand up to forestall Taranee's objections. "Hay Lin can keep an eye on you, make sure I don't do anything to you, and you can act as a protective barrier between me and Hay Lin, I know you can do that."

Taranee nodded. Let's get one thing straight though. If it hadn't been for that little display just now and the fact that you gave the Heart to Hay Lin just now, I wouldn't be doing this." She growled angrily.

Will nodded and felt a slight tingle as Taranee established a link that hadn't been used in ten years. With the link in place, Will began to transmit the important memories down the link and prayed that they would believe her.

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Eric, Alchemie, Sarah and Thomas had met up and were almost at Taranee's position, when suddenly Cedric came round the corner with a group of soldiers at his back. On his return to Meridian, he'd had a hunch that trouble was brewing in the dungeons and Cedric had learnt to trust his hunches.

There was a momentary pause, as both groups looked at each other in a kind of numb shock. Then the firefight started.

"We've been discovered!" Eric transmitted to Taranee telepathically.

"Retreat, I've got Hay Lin, we can finish the job!" Taranee ordered in reply. Eric nodded mentally and passed on her orders to the others. Blasting a hole in the ceiling, Eric led the Phoenix commandos out across Meridian and back to the portal home, not caring if they were seen or not.

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Taranee looked at Will curiously. If the memories she'd seen were true, then Will hadn't betrayed them and Taranee had incinerated the real traitor. The trouble is, Taranee reminded herself, she wasn't sure if they were and Taranee wasn't prepared to take that risk.

"I have a way to destroy Phobos once and for all." Will told Taranee and Hay Lin firmly. "But I need you to get away from here." Will turned and a tear ran down her cheek. "There won't be a Meridian left after this." And she felt sick to her stomach at what she was proposing to do and the people that would die. People that she'd fought to free, people she'd let down and people who'd fought Phobos for longer than anyone else.

Taranee shook her head. "Sorry Will, I don't trust you enough to just take your word. If what you've told us is true, I can forgive you." Taranee turned her face away, a bitter look in her eyes.

"I agree with T here." Hay Lin added. "Last time we trusted you, we lost friends and I spent ten years in a living hell. Much as I'd love to believe you, you've fooled us before, you may well be trying to fool us again."

Will let out a sigh of frustration, Will threw her hands into the air. "But…" Will began, but Taranee cut her off with a wave of her hand.

"No arguments, I'm coming with you." Taranee said in a tone that would brook no argument.

"Count me in as well. I owe Cedric some serious payback for what he did to me." Hay Lin added, with a nasty glint in her eyes. "Besides, what kind of friends would we be if we let you do this alone?"

And despite everything that had happened, despite what she was going to do, Will felt a brief surge of happiness and love for her friends and she almost broke down into tears at her friends loyalty and trust in her, despite all that she'd done.

"Very well, we go together." Will said, with a small smile forming on her face.

AN: Phew, that was a hugely difficult chapter to do, hope I got it right. As the next chapter should be the final chapter, I'm putting up a poll as to which W.I.T.C.H fic I should put up next.

The first idea is called Dark Mirror. Basically it involves Hay Lin fighting an evil version of W.I.T.C.H during the Nerissa saga in the comics.

The second idea is a D&D/W.I.T.C.H crossover about a young drow who is adopted by Susan Vandom towards the end of the elven wars between the surface alliance (The moon elves, humans and dwarves) and the drow. Twenty years after the peace treaty was signed, an elven prince, Prince Phobos is determined to restart the war and only the young drow and her dragon can stop him.

As always please R&R.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: All good things come to an end. If I owned W.I.T.C.H, it would still be published over here. And it would be up to date.

AN: At the time of writing, here was the result of my poll.

Dark Mirror: 1

Unnamed W.I.T.C.H D&D crossover: 0

Dark Mirror it is then.

Dark Mirror is in the W.I.T.C.H comic's section. As you may have noticed, this one has been moved to the comics section as well.

There was a tense silence in the group as they walked towards the dungeon exit. Will could practically taste the tension in the air. Feeling the need to break the silence, Will opened her mouth to speak.

"Guys, I…"

"Will, perhaps…"

"I hope…"

All three girls spoke at once, before stopping and looking at each other. Then, first Hay Lin quickly followed by Taranee and Will, the three girls cracked up. It wasn't really that funny, but the tension of the past few minutes just made them keep on laughing.

Cedric turned his head towards the sound of laughter coming from another part of the dungeon. Curiosity aroused, he turned towards the sound. Laughter was rare in Phobos's dungeons and laughter that wasn't accompanied by the screams of some poor soul being tortured was practically unheard of.

Will and the others had finally managed to calm themselves down, Will began to speak once more.

"Guys, I'm asking you, please get out of here. I'm serious when I say that Meridian won't be left standing. Nothing at all."

Taranee nodded. "And we're serious about staying."

Suddenly, Cedric rounded the next corner. For a moment, time seemed to freeze. Hay Lin was the first to react. She pulled away from Cedric, into a protective crouch, her memories of the past ten years practically overwhelming her.

"Your majesty? What's going on here?" Cedric asked as he looked from Taranee to Will, to Hay Lin, to Will again. A sudden blast of pink magic sent him flying against a wall.

"You sicken me!" Will snarled, her hands balled into fists. Opening her hand for another strike, she suddenly paused as Hay Lin stood up and pulled Will's hand aside.

"Leave him to Me." she said quietly, her voice loaded with strength and her eyes burning with a fierce intensity. Will nodded and Hay Lin steadily walked towards Cedric, who sneered.

"Did you enjoy our times together?" He asked mockingly. "I know I certainly had a good time. Keep coming and perhaps we'll give your friends a show of one of our 'good times' " he grinned evilly at her. Hay Lin ignored his taunts and grabbed him by the back of the head and under his chin and pulled him into a powerful kiss.

A look of pure shock crossed Cedric's face. It quickly turned to pure horror as he realised what Hay Lin was doing. Hay Lin knocked his arms away as he tried to push her away from him. There was a squelching sound, like something organic popping and Hay Lin let Cedric go as blood came poring out of his nose and mouth, to run down his face. As he fell to his knees, Hay Lin glared down at him.

"My only regret is that I didn't have the time to kill you even more slowly." She hissed at him and turned and walked away.

"Umm what did you just do?" Will asked as Hay Lin sauntered back to them. Behind her, Cedric desperately tried to breathe

"I made his lungs explode, by filling them with far more air than they could handle" Hay Lin replied with a vicious little smirk on her face. "I hear it's supposed to be an extremely painful way to die."

Will stared at Hay Lin in disbelief. "Hay-Hay, you can be really scary when you get revenge, you know that?" to which Hay Lin merely gave a predatory grin.

* * *

Phobos stepped into his royal bedchamber, feeling exhausted. Driving Nerissa's knights out and changing the magical codes to Candracar had been tiring. And now Cedric was nowhere to be found. According to the guards, Cedric had something important to tell him. With a snarl, Phobos stormed towards the dungeons, suspecting that Cedric was paying his 'pet' prisoner Hay Lin a visit. Not for one second did he suspect anything approaching the truth.

* * *

Taranee was missing. That was the first thing Nerissa noticed when she met up with Eric Lyndon and the other Phoenix commandos.

"Where's Taranee? Did you succeed?" Nerissa shot at them. Eric gave Nerissa a sharp glare.

"We got discovered in the dungeons, but Taranee managed to free Hay Lin and ordered us to let her finish the job. Nice work your end, by the way." Eric told her.

"Well let us hope that Miss Cook and Miss Lin are up to the challenge then, 'cause by my reckoning, we won't have a second chance like this again." Nerissa replied.

* * *

Will pulled her friends aside as she saw Phobos approach.

"Trust me." She whispered to them.

"Fine, but betray us and I'll make what Hay did to Cedric seem positively merciful." Taranee growled at her. Will nodded and stepped out towards Phobos.

"Phobos, did you succeed, keeper of my heart?" Will said in a mildly worried voice.

"We drove Nerissa and her foul knights from Candracar and I personally have taken steps to stop it from happening again. Now where is Lord Cedric? I hear he has something to tell me."

A look of concern flashed across Will's face. This would not work if Phobos realised what was happening. Thinking quickly, she spoke up.

"Cedric is dead. Taranee's Phoenix commandos attacked the castle, but I have driven them off. Taranee herself lies dead in the dungeons." Will told Phobos quickly, who grinned like the proverbial Cheshire Cat. Grabbing her by the waist, Phobos pulled Will into a powerful embrace.

"That's wonderful news!" he exclaimed and gave her a very deep kiss. Will's mind reached down into herself, right down to the child growing inside her and felt a twinge of regret at what she was about to do.

Phobos suddenly stiffened and his eyes widened as he felt a burst of magic shoot down his bond with his still unborn child.

"What are you doing?" he gasped as he went as stiff as a board.

"I know what you did to me!" Will hissed as guards rushed towards them. Taranee stepped out of the shadows and sent a stream of flames at them, forcing them to back off, while Hay Lin suddenly turned the air around the other guards into a toxic cloud.

"But you'll kill everyone here. This entire city, full of innocents, will die!" Phobos practically shouted in desperation.

"I know." Will murmured softly as a white cocoon enveloped them both.

Meanwhile, in Hay Lin's hands, the Heart began to glow. In the blink of an eye, Hay Lin and Taranee were teletransported back to Earth, despite their intent to stay.

The white cocoon expanded and all of Meridian was enveloped as the magical energy consumed the city.

When the white cocoon vanished, Meridian was wiped clean from the surface of Metamoor without a trace.

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Eric, Sarah, Alchemie and Thomas all jumped back in surprise when Taranee and Hay Lin suddenly appeared in their midst.

"What happened?" Alchemie asked. Taranee sent them all a recall of what had happened after they separated.

"Wow, you guys have had a really weird day." Sarah whistled when she finished. Nerissa on the other hand was glaring daggers at Hay Lin.

"You have the Heart of Candracar? Give it to me!" Nerissa demanded. Taranee and Hay Lin looked at her.

"No." they both stated simultaneously.

"WHAT!?! Give it to me, or I will kill all those you still hold dear." Nerissa snapped at them. Taranee reached deep within her magic and activated the spell.

Nerissa fell to the ground as her body aged some fifty years in a matter of minutes.

"Nerissa, Nerissa, Nerissa." Taranee tutted, walking over toward Nerissa. "Did you really think I didn't take any precautions when I released you from your prison?" A glow of red fire magic surrounded Nerissa and solidified as hard as steel. Nerissa silently raged against Taranee from inside her cell and swore that she would have her revenge.

* * *

Six months later.

Extract taken from the diary of Taranee Cook.

It's been six months since Meridian was destroyed and still the remnants of Phobos's empire continue to fight. Without Phobos's leadership though, they're divided and leaderless. It's strange, not living in a world that's not at war. We've all had to adjust. Me, and the rest of the Phoenix, are busy training the Fire Guardian Corps. Hay Lin teaches air magic to the Air Guardian Corps, but we're still working on water and Earth. Way I see it, the bigger, better trained, better organised the Guardians are, the better they'll be at their task of keeping piece through the worlds.

Candracar isn't the central hub it used to be either. A united planetary has taken the place of the council of old and despite all our teething troubles, things are slowly improving. We don't just use magic, but technology too. The idea is that every world brings something to the table, as it were.

There's even been talk of selecting a new Oracle and someone nominated yours truly. I'm not sure whether I should take the job or not. Hay Lin thinks I should, but I'm not so sure. Good wartime leaders don't always become great peacetime leaders and I am Very much a wartime leader.

We cleared the Dark Mother out of Candracar soon after the destruction of Meridian. Together, she was no match for us.

Hay Lin and Eric are getting pretty close these days. It's rather like watching a pair of teenagers, truth be told. Heh, Hay-Hay's first love. Most people fall in love for the first time as teenagers. Sadly, she was deprived of that by Phobos and Cedric and even Will's treacherous Astral Drop.

Hay Lin still has nightmares about her time in Phobos's dungeon and she tends to recoil away from any mans touch, although Eric seems to be helping her past it. She'll never have children, a last legacy of Cedric's torture that will never heal. I suspect that Hay probably hates Cedric more than Phobos. Fortunately they're both dead and will never hurt anyone again.

And then there's Will. My feelings about Will are…complicated. Hay Lin seems to have forgiven her, although I suspect that she feels less than forgiving after one of her nightmares. But Hay-Hay hates the treacherous astral drop far more than she does Will. Whatever else I can say about Will, I think I can say this for certain. At the end of her life, Will was our friend.

The End

AN: Before you give me any flak for how Hay Lin reacted to Cedric earlier, please bear in mind, the man has repeatedly tortured and raped her over the course of ten years. I'd be surprised if there wasn't any reaction, truth be told.


End file.
